You Can't Be Serious
by Amelia Sprightly
Summary: Princess Bubblegum is awoken during the night by Marceline knocking at her balcony window, asking the princess to join her at a rock concert- although Bubblegum really didn't have much choice in the matter. A couple of years later- and how things have changed between the pair. Will Marceline's ideas about getting back together stick with the candy girl?
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue-**

It was a cool and calm evening in the candy kingdom, the stars were out and the occasional cloud would lazily drift across the moon, a warm breeze rustling the gumdrops in the trees. The sugary sweet residents of the kingdom were tucked away in their little candy beds, including Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum, who, after a long day of attending to royal affairs was dozing peacefully in the pink bedroom at the top of the tallest candy castle tower.

Or so she was, until she was suddenly awoken by a sharp rapping at her balcony window. She sat up straight, bleary eyed and confused. The rapping pierced the quiet room again, and Bubblegum's head turned sharply towards the balcony, to see a dark shadow looming menacingly, silhouetted by the eerie glow of the moon. She let out a frightened yelp, before squinting a little harder and…  
"Marceline…?"  
"Bonniiiiiie…wake up! Come on, hurry those buns girl!"  
"Wha- Marceline! What are you-?" Bubblegum swivelled her feet off the bed and stomped over to the balcony doors, throwing them open with a disgruntled expression on her pink face. "Marceline I hardly-" She was cut off as Marceline swept over the top of her head and flipped backwards so was lying in the air next to Bubblegum, she tilted her head back, her long dark hair falling to the ground.  
There was a moment of silence as Bubblegum tried to organise some kind of coherent thought, she floundered for the words to demand why Marceline had woken her up at such a late hour.

Marceline poked Bubblegum's nose.  
"C'mon."  
Bubblegum stared at her incredulously.  
"Marceline do you even know how late it is!" she whispered fiercely "What- just what are you doing here- now?" Marceline rolled over in the air and rested her head in her hands, blowing a stray strand of hair out of her face.  
"Okay, so you know how the other day, you said you'd like, never been to an actual concert?"  
Realisation hit Bubblegum very quickly.  
"You can't be serious."  
Marceline grinned devilishly, her sharp fangs glinting in the moonlight.  
"Shockingly enough Bonnie, I am being serious for once so c'mon, out of that…erm…nightdress and into something you can rock out in!" She flew over to Bubblegum's large wardrobe and started tossing clothes out while Bubblegum darted, flustered, trying to pick her delicate dresses up off the floor. "Nope…nope…too formal…too frilly…what even _is_ this, glob…ah here we go!" She threw an old faded pink vest top and some dark purple jeans over at Bubblegum- they landed with a satisfying _whump_ on her face.

"Marceline…" tried Bubblegum as she tore the clothes from her face "I really should get some sleep, you _know_ I have a whole kingdom to run here!"  
"Bonnie, I've heard this all before dude. I know! But I swear, you won't regret it, this is gonna be a totally rocking concert! The Gilded Bats are playing- you know the band I made you listen to the other day, you said you liked them? Remember?" Bubblegum sighed, she could tell Marceline wasn't going to budge on this, besides, she seemed so excited for it…. "Pleeeeeeeaaaase Bonnibel? Pleeeeeeaaaaase? Don't make me have to kidnap you, because you know I will." Bubblegum knew full well she would and could, so...  
"Fine!"  
Marceline beamed, c'mon then get changed, or we'll be too late."

Bubblegum had barely pulled the vest top on before Marceline had swooped down and scooped her up, suddenly the candy kingdom was flying by below them, becoming smaller and smaller as Marceline flew higher and further into the starry night. Bubblegum's yawns soon became fewer and farer between as they flew through the air, the cold wind created by their speed brushing past her face and keeping her alert. Marceline was smug, she'd thought the Princess would have flat out refused to come to the concert, sometimes Bonnie got so caught up in all her science and royal duties and junk. But even though she'd been reluctant, she'd agreed to come, heck maybe Marceline's rebellious spirit was rubbing off on her a little. Bubblegum was hesitant to admit it, but soaring above the land of Ooo, sneaking out of her kingdom to go to _a rock concert_ with her _vampire girlfriend…_it was just so…adventurous! Finn would be impressed with her, she thought to herself, smiling. Glob, ever since she'd met Marceline she made her life so much more exciting, so much more fun- she smiled sheepishly up at her .  
"Contrary to my earlier reluctance….thank you for taking me out tonight Marcie" she gave her a peck on the cheek, "I'm actually…really excited!" Marceline laughed, the princess was positively beaming.  
"Bonnie, it'd be a crime if I left you shut up in that castle - _especially_ since you've never been to a concert."

Bubblegum could soon spot the twinkling lights of the concert arena in the distance, and as they drew closer the twinkling lights became mighty spotlights, the hum of voices becoming an excited roar as the crowd waited in anticipation for the band to start playing. It looked like the arena had once been a large hall, but the walls- weathered over the years- were overgrown with vines and were crumbling. If there ever was a ceiling it had collapsed to leave just the stage, encircled by the stony pillars and greenery that had taken over the place, with the stars watching from above. All in all, it was a breathtaking scene, made all the more impressive by the diverse audience that had gathered to see the band. Bubblegum could spot creatures of all shapes and sizes and colours, people from every kingdom in Ooo were together here, some dressed in some …_interesting_ clothing to say the least.

Marceline swooped down and they dropped subtly into the crowd towards the back of the arena. Bubblegum felt a little out of her comfort zone, the crowd made her feel claustrophobic and she was anxious about the new environment- without thinking she reached out and grabbed Marceline's hand. Marceline turned and gave her a reassuring smile, she could see Bonnie beginning to panic so she squeezed her hand for comfort and started to lead them through the crowd, walking around the edge of the arena. Unlike bubblegum, Marceline was in her element, she saw a number of people she recognised and greeted most with a fist bump or a rock hand as she and Bubblegum weaved through the masses of fans. Eventually they got to the merch stall, Marceline had an idea. Bubblegum in tow, she shoved her way to the counter, her eyes roved over the selection of wristbands… hoodies… accessories… shirts- ah perfect.  
"YO- dude!" she tried to grab the attention of the merch seller over the noise of the crowd- he was a skinny goblin guy wearing all black, with tattoos on his arms and piercings running up his pointed ears, he looked over to her in acknowledgement. Bubblegum wasn't sure what Marceline was up to but she gripped her hand tightly. Marceline pointed to a black T shirt hanging on the back of the stall- it had a picture of one of the band's album covers on it. "I'll take one of those!" she yelled. The merch seller grabbed the shirt off the wall and gave it to Marceline as she paid him with her free hand.  
"You're a lucky chick, that was the last one we had in stock" he said before his attention was stolen by more fans demanding merch, waving at him with money in their hands.

Marceline moved swiftly through the crowds, still leading Bubblegum along behind her and they came to a stop at a relatively quiet spot behind the merch stall, dimly lit but still somehow bright due to the multi-coloured stage lights.  
"Here" said Marceline, now holding up the shirt for Bubblegum to see. It had what looked like a picture of two marshmallows on sticks, stabbing a snake on the front.  
"What's this?" enquired Bubblegum as Marceline gestured for her to raise her arms. Bubblegum did so, and Marceline slid the shirt onto Bubblegum over the tank top she was wearing.  
"I know you're kinda nervous, so here. Now you'll fit right in with the crowds, okay?" she smiled warmly. Bubblegum was touched, she instantly felt confident again and she threw her arms round Marceline.  
"Marcy, for a vampire queen you can be so sweet sometimes! Thank you, I'll treasure it" Marceline laughed,  
"Yeah yeah- now c'mon, I think the band's about to start playing- let's get a better view!"

Arm in arm, they made their way through the crowds- with a thousand years of practise Marceline was a pro at dodging and weaving her way through an audience of fans, and they found themselves at a comfortable position near the stage just as the lighting grew dim and steam began to pour off the edges. The band emerged and the crowd's shrieks grew more excited than ever, swept away with the mob's attitude both Marceline and Bubblegum joined in, whooping and yelling- sharing a grin in between times. They started playing their first song, it was one that Marceline and Bubblegum had listened to several times over the past weeks and the two girls excitedly joined with the crowd, singing the lyrics at the top of their lungs.

And so it was, over the course of the next 2 and a half hours- the girls laughed and yelled and singed, Bubblegum had forgotten entirely about her royal duties in the candy kingdom, all she heard was the music pumping out around her- all she could feel was the adrenaline and the energy coursing through her and the likeminded fans singing with her, but best of all- she had Marceline at her side to experience it all with. Marceline had been to hundreds of concerts over the years, but nothing quite compared to seeing Bonnie so genuinely care free, to seeing her let loose and just rock out! Somehow this concert was different, it wasn't the band playing or the music she could hear that made it special- it wasn't the bustling fans jumping and screaming with her, it was simply being with Bonnibel. Marceline couldn't explain it, something about the pink candy princess yanked her right in her heart guts, somehow everything was different with Bonnibel- and that was something Marceline valued hugely, considering she'd already experienced over a thousand years of living, doing the same things over and over.

The hours passing seemed like minutes as the night merged into a blur of dancing and laughing and singing, all too soon the band announced to the fans that it was the penultimate song of the night, a fast paced rock song. The crowd's energies were still high and it would have been impossible to place exactly which audience member started the mosh pit, but soon enough the bustling crowd turned into some kind of war zone. People were thrashing and throwing their arms around, some were jumping and jostling others, some were running around, trying to get people to move with them- others pushing and shoving to get to the front in their excitement. Bubblegum had never experienced anything this…_rough_ before- crying out, she was torn away from Marceline as audience members pushed and shoved at her. Marceline hissed as Bubblegum was swept from her, she tried to keep her grip on her hand but it was impossible to resist the crowd's movement.

Bubblegum was completely lost, she was bumped from person to person, stumbling through the crowd. She couldn't find Marceline, she didn't know what to do- she was trying so desperately not to fall over because she knew if she did the crowd wouldn't pause to trample over her- she was on the verge of tears now, trying to yell over the singing and screaming surrounding her,  
"Marceline! Please- Marceline where are you?" she was dizzy and bruised and feeling absolutely hopeless. Just as she was shoved particularly violently by one bulky looking guy who appeared to be from the fire kingdom she was caught before she smacked onto the floor. She looked up and practically swooned, it was Marcy- thank Glob.

Marceline lifted her up and cupped her face in her hands.  
"Are you okay? Jeez I'm so sorry, are you hurt?" asked Marceline, real concern showing in her expression.  
"No-no, I'm fine…just a little- that guy shoved me and I don't know-"  
"What guy shoved you now?" asked Marceline, a fierce look making its way into her eyes. Bubblegum nodded towards the fire kingdom guy who'd pushed her so harshly earlier.  
"Right." Said Marceline, stomping her way over to him with Bubblegum in tow behind her. Somehow the crowd didn't seem as dangerous now that Marceline was holding her hand so tightly and guiding her so carefully. "Hey, you!" she jabbed him on his shoulder, closer up he seemed even larger than earlier, he turned and loomed over the two girls.  
"What?" he growled aggressively.  
"You shoved her?" Said Marceline, completely fearless despite being so outsized.  
"Yeah, and what? It's a concert, now piss off will you?" he began to turn away from Marceline, but she put her hand on his shoulder and easily pulled him back round. His once cocky expression fell away to a look of pure terror as Marceline's faced transformed to that of a hideous monster, huge fangs bared and demonic eyes glowing she hissed,  
"No one, and I mean NO ONE, hurts my girlfriend." She punched him square in his terrified face and he fell to the floor unconscious. A few surrounding members of the crowd who'd been watching in awe cheered, some other people who he must have come with (as they also had the iconic look of the fire kingdom) picked up his limp body and dragged him away, giving Marceline some very scared and cautious glances as they did so. Marceline turned, her face having returned to normal to see Bubblegum standing, mouth open wide in astonishment.

"Heh, let's get you out of here..." Marceline wrapped her arms around Bubblegum and they floated upwards, away from the crowds. Bubblegum held on for dear life as the last song of the evening started playing and the people in the audience became smaller and smaller. Marceline flew them to the top of one of the stone pillars just behind the stage and they landed gently on it- the softer and slower music drifting up to them and the stars looking down on them.  
"Marcy, that was absolutely...I just- you're amazing, you know that?" Bubblegum said, looking at her in wonderment.  
"So I've been told" Marceline shrugged with an all-too-familiar smirk that made Bubblegum's heart flutter. Without saying a word, Bubblegum wrapped her arms around the vampire girl's neck, Marceline put her hands gently at Bubblegum's waist and they swayed in time to the music as it played for them below.  
"Ha, don't get too cocky, I could still reveal to everyone that the fearless Vampire Queen sometimes uses her bat-form just because it's fun to snuggle in..." said Bubblegum, a smile playing at the corners of her lips.  
"Do it and you're dead." Replied Marceline threateningly, raising an eyebrow in challenge.  
Bubblegum chuckled "Okay, okay- although then you'd have no one to steal away during the night and take to concerts."  
"Hmm that's true, maybe I'll hold off drinking your blood for a little while longer…"  
"How noble of you, my deepest gratitude"  
"Yeah and don't you forget it- although pink _is_ still a shade of red too, Bonnie…"  
"Do it and you're dead." Bubblegum repeated Marceline's words from earlier.  
The two girls laughed loudly, and soon after drifted into a dreamy and comfortable silence as they swayed to the last chorus of the song. It was one of those few and far between moments that Marceline knew came oh so rarely, where she felt absolutely content, here under the twinkling stars with her Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum. Their eyes met and they naturally leaned in, their breaths mingling, and then their lips touched and they were kissing. It was slow and passionate and soft and loving, they fit together so perfectly and felt so complete holding each other that nothing else seemed to matter, Bubblegum didn't even notice the fireworks exploding behind her, signalling the finale and end of the concert.

All of a sudden the explosions of colour illuminated the two girls wrapped in each other's arms on top of the pillar, they were spotted by the crowd members below- it started with a few cheers and then all of a sudden hundreds of them were pointing and cheering, laughing and clapping in good spirit. When they noticed, the two girls broke apart and looked down at the crowds, Bubblegum was blushing furiously and her hands covered her face in embarrassment- Marceline on the other hand grinned and took a bow, she was rewarded with more cheers from the audience below.  
"Marceline, really?" scolded Bubblegum  
"Hey I can't help it, they love us!" winked Marceline. She scooped up Bubblegum bridal style and gave her another quick kiss on the lips before flying over the crowds, back towards the candy kingdom- both were still able to hear the applause of the roaring audience members for quite some time before the arena faded away into the warm night.

By the time they arrived back at the Candy Castle, Bubblegum was almost asleep, the adrenaline and excitement from the concert having worn off, and her extended stay in Marceline's arms had made her far too comfortable. Marceline floated in through the balcony doors to Bubblegum's bedroom, which still had clothes strewn across the floor from earlier.  
"Hey Princess, we're back" whispered Marceline softly as she placed Bubblegum on the side of the bed. Bubblegum yawned and decided that she was too tired to get changed again, so she just crawled straight over to the pillows and under her duvet still wearing the rock shirt Marceline had given her earlier. She gestured for Marceline to join her and with a smile she climbed under the duvet as well and wrapped Bubblegum in her arms.

"I had a wonderful time tonight Marcy, thank you" whispered Bubblegum  
"You're welcome Bonnie, I'm glad you had fun" said Marceline as she snuggled her head into the crook of Bubblegum's neck.  
"It was probably-" Bubblegum interrupted herself with a yawn "-one of the best nights…of my life" she smiled as Marceline hugged her tighter."Hey, this shirt is really comfy, I might wear it every night you know- and it can remind me of this evening…and of you."  
The two girls drifted off to sleep together, utterly content and utterly in love.

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed reading this (even with the ridiculous amounts of fluff), it was definitely fun to write- I ship these two so hard haha. This is my first fic, so constructive criticism is most definitely welcome! Any reviews are really appreciated- it might be that in the future I'll add more chapters to this, Anyway- thanks for reading! :D**


	2. Chapter 2

Bubblegum tossed and turned in her all-too empty bed again, it often felt too big for her now- as though half the space was there to be occupied by someone else (preferably someone with long, silky black hair and blue-grey skin). Tonight her thoughts had been drifting back to that concert Marceline had taken her to, which was-what, two years ago now? She curled up tighter, hugging her knees and clutching at the rock shirt she wore. She'd tried not to wear it at the start, it only reminded her of Marcy, of good memories now lost…but she soon found she just couldn't face the night without it. It was hard to believe- only a few months after that wonderful night they'd just fallen apart. Bubblegum's gut twisted with guilt, at first she'd been angry, hurt and ignorant. But the more time she spent without Marceline in her life the more her heart longed for that happiness again, the more she dwelled and analysed- eventually coming to a reasoned conclusion that the entire mess was completely her fault. It was times like this, when she would lie awake in bed, that she wished- she wished _so desperately_that she could change things, go back and make it better, go back and stop herself.

"Idiot…" she mumbled angrily to herself, how she ever claimed herself a scientist when she'd clearly been such a fool, she didn't know. She'd been spending more time than ever down in her lab actually; it was a helpful distraction sometimes. But she knew that her candy people had noticed how distant she'd become over the past year and a half, she knew and that's why she'd resolved to be strong for them, for the sake of her kingdom. She would throw herself into her work, no more distractions. She would endeavour to be a good princess to her people, that was the best she could give them.  
In the past she used to give in to the tears that now threatened to overwhelm her, the lump in her throat felt so uncomfortably present- but she refused to concede to it. She would be strong. She would not cry. No more tears, there'd been too many of them already.  
"Oh Marcy..." she whispered. Her chest felt tight, she hugged her knees tighter still, feeling that maybe she could disappear altogether, escape from the anguish perhaps…  
But no, she would be strong.

Marceline was bored. She was bored and she was frustrated. She'd woken up in the evening wanting to go out and play her bass under the stars and the moon, but typically it was a cloudy and mundane night. Usually what Marceline loved about the night time was the mysteriousness, the way the glow of the moon would accent and highlight things so differently, sometimes strangely, transforming the landscape. But the cloudy canopy only served to put a boring grey tint on the already dark world. Not being one to accept limitations, Marceline decided she would fly above them and she _would_ play her bass under the stars if she wanted to, perks of being a vampire, right? She was floating on her back amongst cloudy towers in her usual ripped jeans and striped jumper (regretting her choice of sandals slightly, if one fell off she'd never find it from this height) and plucking idly at her bass. But her gloomy disposition didn't disappear, she was trying to find a melody, a tune- anything that she could run with, but somehow even though she wanted to…she just wasn't in the mood to make music. Usually this would be incredibly odd for Marceline, but she'd been suffering from this, ah…creative block for quite a while now. The longer she persisted at it the more frustrated she got, she angrily swung her axe at the pillars of cloud surrounding her, only succeeding in rearranging the silver fluff into a thin fog. Her angry frown deepened. Normally if she didn't have anything to do she'd just go hang out with friends, but Finn and Jake were asleep, and she'd already woken them up last night, she figured she couldn't really do it again.  
"Ugh…what happened to all my friends" she thought to herself, drifting aimlessly. "Oh…right." Outliving everyone- just another perk of being a vampire.

Realising she wasn't sure where she'd actually floated to, as her view of Ooo had been blocked by the clouds below, she lowered herself through the fog to find that she was floating right above the candy kingdom. She was immediately angry. How was it that fate always ended up making her think of Bonnibel practically every damn night? No matter how hard she pushed the pink Princess out of her mind- over and over she had _tried- _nothing worked. She'd lived for over a thousand years, she'd met all kinds of people- dated a heck of a lot of them and she had never had this problem. She'd been sad before, she'd had breakups, she'd had to deal with death…but somehow she always willed herself to keep going, it was often her music that could console her and support her. It seemed that ever since the breakup the music was just…gone. She couldn't even write a simple melody anymore, her heart wasn't in it.  
"ARGH, why'd I have to go and ruin everything?" she yelled, and swung her axe at the air, finding it incredibly unsatisfying in venting her emotions. The only way she'd dealt with junk like this before was through playing her bass, what was she supposed to do now? But she wasn't angry for long; it fizzled out again into the familiar melancholy she'd dealt with for so long now. She looked back down at the candy castle, she thought about Bonnie. Maybe she could go and knock on her window, like she used to…No. That was a stupid idea. She was probably asleep. Besides, she'd hurt Bubblegum enough, she should learn to leave well enough alone by now.  
"Oh…Bonnie…" she sighed, looked back once more with dull eyes and drifted back to her cave.

* * *

It was a few weeks later, and Finn the human was darting around the living room of his and Jake's giant tree fort, rearranging the chairs and sofas into position for movie night.  
"Bro! LSP says she's not coming, somethin' about a 'lumping hot date with Brad'" Jack chuckled as he stretched over to put the phone back down.  
"Aw maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan" Finn's face fell for a second, but it lit up again almost immediately. "Well this movie night's still gonna be awesome dude, me and Beemo were digging around earlier, and we've found like, a super wicked cool action film- it's gonna be sweeeeeeeeeeet!"  
"Awesome bro" The two had a brief pause to break down dancing before collapsing on the sofa together. "Dude I just hope PB and Marceline don't get all argue-ey like last time…"  
"Yeah that was kinda weak- man it'll be fine. No one's gon' be arguing once we get this totally rockin' movie on!"  
"Hehe, yeah!" They then proceeded to have a tough guy contest, and rolled around the fort laughing and fighting.

Meanwhile, Marceline was just flying out of her cave, clad in some dark jeans, an old t shirt, and a blue flannel shirt and on her way to the tree fort for movie night. She couldn't keep making excuses to miss the get togethers Finn always held, but it's not like she would be having a good time while Bonnie was there…not because Bonnie did anything wrong but the pure awkwardness and the guilty feeling in her stomach just made Marceline want to leave. And if it wasn't that, she'd get caught up in another pointless argument. She sighed, it was in her nature to tease and be talkative and loud, she wanted to have fun…she clenched her jaw slightly, deciding that she would make an effort to enjoy the evening this time, heck she knew (hoped) they had it in them to get along.

Bubblegum was already knocking on the door of the tree fort, prompt as always. She wondered if Marceline would come this time, and if she did would they spend another awkward evening ignoring each other, and if not that- arguing again? Since she'd met Finn about a year ago, she'd also ended up hanging out with Marceline again, as part of a group. The first time they'd seen each other since the breakup they'd just sort of…quietly stood there, and talked to everyone but each other. Bubblegum cringed at the memory. As they saw each other more frequently they'd developed this strange relationship where they never talked about their past, they just bickered aimlessly. Bubblegum was fairly certain Finn thought they hadn't known each other before being introduced through him- well until the door lord incident last week, which had gotten a little….heated. Bubblegum was still trying to puzzle out what had happened there.

She was still waiting for Finn to come to the door when she felt a cold pair of hands jog her shoulders from behind, she squeaked in surprise and turned to see Marceline, floating behind her with a smirk on her face. She felt a pang at her chest but she found it easy to keep the stern expression on her face- she'd had a lot of practise. She crossed her arms and exhaled.  
"Hey, Marceline." She wasn't sure where the disdain in her voice came from, she realised how it sounded but it was practically automatic.  
"And it's wonderful to see you too, Princess!" replied Marceline sarcastically. She smiled to herself ironically at how much the tone of their banter had changed.  
The door swung open suddenly and Finn's beaming (although seemingly a little battered, for some reason?) face was there to greet them.  
"Hey guys! Come in, Beemo's like, all set up for the movie, we're just waiting on Lady and then- oh hey there she is, awesome!" Lady flew into view and greeted them all with something in Korean.  
"Come on dudes, let's get the movie started!" Finn waved them in as he bounced back to the living room, Bubblegum smiled at his energy, without thinking she glanced at Marceline who was also grinning and returned the look, Bubblegum felt her smile widen, just a little bit.

The girls proceeded into the living room, Bubblegum sat down on the sofa and Marceline was about to go to the seat furthest from her…simply out of habit but she reminded herself she wasn't going to let this evening go like the others. So instead, much to Bubblegum's surprise she sat herself down on the sofa next to her, neither girl mentioned the change.  
"Okay guys…prepare…to be…AMAZED…" Finn leapt away from Beemo where he'd set up the movie and into one of the empty chairs, his eyes were fixed to the holographic screen; Jake and Lady were snuggled up together on the other sofa.  
The gang talked through the movie, Finn yelling and punching the air at the fight scenes, Jake sometimes bringing up debates on certain aspects of the film  
"There's no way a guy could seriously knock out those five dudes in a single punch, right?"  
Bubblegum would offer her scientific opinions on the matter, and Marceline usually making some kind of wise crack about it. Surprisingly enough for both girls, the evening went smoothly, for once they were both joining in conversation, laughing together and having a good time- it felt kind of like how it had been before.

"No, no look! Beemo, could you rewind it once more please?" Bubblegum insisted, "You see the speed the car is going at on the speedometer _here_, and then…fast-forward…stop! See, by the time it goes up the ramp, taking into account it's acceleration and the angle it entered the air at, there's no_ way_ it could have made the jump!"  
"Woah, Peebles gots SMARTS man" said Finn, slightly awed.  
"I dunno PB…" said Jake rubbing his chin, "it looks like it's goin' pretty fast to me. I think it woulda made it…"  
"This from the guy who couldn't jump across a 3 meter gap in the bridge on my way to my house, when he has _magical stretching abilities_?" piped in Marceline, Bubblegum giggled and the girls shared a discrete bro-fist.  
Jake grunted "yeah yeah, let's just watch the movie!" Lady said something in a consoling tone to him and his smile returned. She said something else quietly, again in Korean and he blushed a little- Marceline and Bubblegum shared a look at this and laughed together, they knew each other well enough that their thoughts didn't need voicing.

After the movie finished Jake and Lady decided to go for a walk outside together, Marceline made a not-incredibly-appropriate comment about them wanting some private time alone, which made Bubblegum and Finn laugh (although Marceline wasn't entirely convinced Finn had really understood the joke). Unfortunately, the human boy's seemingly boundless energy had failed him,  
"Hey do you guys wanna-"he yawned "-stay for a sleepover or somethin', we could do an all-nighter…. because I'm totally" he interrupted himself again with another wide mouthed yawn "not even sleepy…". The girls decided to save him from forcing himself to stay up,  
"No Finn don't worry about it, I'm actually very tired, I think it best I get back to the Castle about now" Actually Bubblegum felt wide awake, her sleeping patterns were still being interrupted often by nights where her troubled thoughts kept her from sleeping, she figured she could always go home and do some late night lab work.  
"Aw okay Peebles…what- uh, what about you Marcy?" he said sleepily.  
"Yeah Finn I got, uhh, Vampire biz I gotta get done, we'll hang tomorrow night, strangle some pixies or somethin', cools?" she said with a fanged grin.  
"Okay, rad" he smiled at his two best pals "night then guys"  
"Goodnight Finn, and thanks for a wonderful movie night" replied Bubblegum politely.  
"Yeah thanks dude" added Marceline. Finn waved them off and shut the door before slowly climbing the many levels of the tree fort to his bedroom.  
"We need to get like a- lift or somethin' for this place" he mumbled tiredly, as he pulled himself up each rung of the ladder.

For about a year and a half, in between the times she was having fun with Finn or pulling pranks, Marceline had felt permanently in a pretty bad mood, brooding over her latest arguments with Bonnie (or how lonely she felt, though she'd never admit it). But getting along with her again, she felt elated. She'd forgotten how good a pair they made, when they weren't bickering that was. Her happy thoughts slowed, however, when she realised that this was the first time she'd been alone with Bonnie since they'd broken up…aw jeez. Were they meant to have like, a heart to heart? Oh glob what if they don't say anything at all and it goes back to being really awkward…but what if she wants to talk about feelings and junk, Marceline wasn't good at that! Shit…shit…

Bubblegum had come to the same realisation, but just thankful that Marceline was being amicable she wasn't having quite the same panic attack.  
"So I guess I'm heading back to the candy kingdom, um…what about you?"  
"Oh, I uhhh, I don't really know. There's still like, a lot of hours left in the night you know and I don't sleep till morning so-"  
"You're welcome to join me on my way back?" Bubblegum had said it instinctively, maybe that was a silly thing to ask...  
"Oh yeah, sure Bonnie" Marceline was pleasantly surprised, the two girls started heading in the direction of the kingdom, Bubblegum walking and Marceline floating beside her. Bubblegum chuckled.  
"What?" Marceline enquired.  
"No it's just, no one's called me Bonnie in a long time." She smiled up at her, thinking of fond memories.  
"Oh, right" Marceline scratched the back of her head absently. "Yeah, I haven't said that in a long time either, it sounds weird now..."  
"Does anyone still call you Mar-Mar?" asked Bubblegum, a smile forming on her lips.  
"What- no, I-"  
"What about Marmalade?"  
"Hey, you-"  
"Marshmallow?"  
"Bonnie!"  
Bubblegum was openly laughing now at the expression on the vampire's face after she'd reeled off her old nicknames for her. Marceline folded her arms.  
"Hmph, I'm the one that's meant to do the teasing around here, ya know" she shoved Bubblegum lightly, but they both knew she wasn't really angry. Bubblegum playfully knocked her in return and the girls laughed.

They talked and laughed their way across the fields between the kingdom and the tree house, they didn't notice the time flying by whilst they were catching up- they hadn't realised they'd actually been walking in circles for about 3 hours since they'd left Finn and Jake's until Bubblegum let out a tired yawn. Laughing about it rather than being frustrated (because they were in such good spirits when they talked like this), they quickly got back on track and The Candy Kingdom soon came into view. Marceline was relaxed, she didn't know why she'd been so worried, the conversation flowed between them easily, naturally, as it always had. That is, until she accidentally made a big error,  
"Heh, this is nice, it feels like how it was before we.." she realised what she was saying a little too late and floundered slightly "before we, um…you know. I just mean- it was good back when, before I…y'know?" smooth.  
Bubblegum's smile dropped a little,  
"Marcy, I'm…I'm sorry for-"  
"No dude you don't have to," interrupted Marceline, she really hadn't expected it to be herself that would initiate this conversation. And she definitely didn't want Bubblegum apologising to her, what was that about anyway? She would just find a way to nip this talk in the bud… "I know I like, messed up everything but, and tonight was really cool, I just…I dunno I thought" she gulped, meeting Bubblegum's wide eyed gaze uncomfortably and unsure how to finish her sentence. "Maybe we could go back to being…not…broken up…maybe, possibly…"  
… Marceline had not been planning on saying that. What the hell did she just say? Why. Why. Why. WHY DID SHE JUST SAY THAT? She _knew_ Bonnie didn't like her like that anymore! She couldn't, not after what she'd done to her! Oh crap, crap Bonnie was staring at her _really _weirdly.

Bubblegum didn't know what to say, her thoughts were confused. Why was Marceline saying _she'd_ messed up when Bubblegum was convinced entirely that she'd been the one to ruin everything, she'd been wondering (dwelling would be the more appropriate word) about this moment for months, what she should say and how it would play out and yet instead of having a prepared plan, too many scenarios and answers were drifting around her head for her to choose from. Marceline was still floating there awkwardly, waiting for an answer. Bubblegum knew her well enough to see she was panicking internally.  
"Marceline…I-" assuming what would be coming next from her tone, Marceline cut Bubblegum short  
"No you're right, that was stupid…sorry, I'll just go…"  
"No- Marceline!" There was genuine panic in Bubblegum's voice when she grabbed Marceline's arm to stop her from floating away. "You're not stupid- no I just….I'm not sure it's the best idea. It's not that I don't want to but-"  
"Really, you want to?" Marceline's undead heart felt like it was beating again for a moment. She really, really hadn't been expecting that, but she was confused, "so why- why not?" Bubblegum didn't want to admit it but…  
"I'm…" she exhaled "I'm scared, Marceline. And…the past year and a half I've been, so…so _upset,_I practically haven't functioned, and I know that's all my own doing but…I promised I would throw myself into ruling my kingdom and being strong and I'm scared, if it happened like it did last time and I go and mess this up then it'll be even worse and-" she was saying everything too quickly and tears were running down her face, Marceline was shocked- she hadn't wanted this reaction at all, poor Bonnie… she didn't realise how upset she was by all this, she'd probably been stressing over it for months, just like Marceline herself had been. She'd believed the Princess didn't really care for her anymore…it was a lot to take in, but she was primarily feeling awful- Bonnie was crying and it was her fault oh glob what had she done?

She was suddenly in action, her arms wrapped around Bubblegum like they'd done so many times in the past,  
"Hold on tight" Bubblegum just had enough time to throw her arms around Marceline before they were in the air and she was hanging on for dear life, she yelped and closed her eyes as they flew higher and higher. But it ended quickly, Marceline touched gently down on Bubblegum's balcony. She brought her hands up and wiped away the tears on Bonnie's face carefully, thankfully she'd stopped crying, she guessed she'd been too surprised by their sudden take off. Bonnie was lost for words, but Marceline seemed to have a new kind of confidence and determination in her voice.  
"I have been moping around these stinking kingdoms since the day we broke up, Bonnie. It took me till now to remember how freaking important you are to me, and I… I've lived for so _long. _And Bonnibel I am telling you now, this" she pointed to Bubblegum and then to herself "this, doesn't happen a lot. I just- I'm not good at saying this junk but, I know you're scared and I'm so, so sorry for what I did and I just, I refuse to lose this again, man this last year and a half seriously _sucked_ with you." Bubblegum was taken aback; she was touched by what Marceline was saying- and amazed by how serious she was. That wasn't to say Marceline's usual self wasn't still present though," Jeez we only talked for the first time in however long today… like, I wasn't planning on this I swear, I'm sorry I don't know what's up with me …" she said, when she realised how dramatic she sounded to herself.  
Bubblegum didn't find it hard to remember how she'd fallen in love with the vampire girl.  
"Marceline, you're amazing, you know that?" Bubblegum's words echoed a distant memory  
"So I've been told" Marceline shrugged, and grinned.  
Bubblegum laughed, hiccupping a little from crying earlier.  
"I understand what you mean Marcy, I'm just…I'm still not sure…"  
"Look don't worry about it, I'm gonna convince you. I promise, you'll realise soon enough you can't say no to this" she winked and floated back off the balcony. Bubblegum giggled,  
"If you say so…goodnight Marceline." Marceline started floating further away,  
"Goodnight Bonnibel, sweet dreams." Bubblegum turned and opened her balcony door, she went into her room and sighed, she couldn't be bothered to change out of the jeans she was wearing so she just changed her top to her usual rock shirt.  
"So you do still wear it…" a familiar voice spoke in the darkness of her room. Bubblegum jumped and nearly screamed in fright before she stopped herself.  
"MARCELINE I DON'T KNOW WHERE YOU ARE BUT STOP BEING INVISIBLE AND GET OUT OF MY ROOM IMMEDIATELY." She heard a light chuckle before her curtains fluttered as an invisible Marceline flew past them; she only became visible again in the distance (too far away for Bonnie to glare/ yell at her…). Bubblegum watched and couldn't resist smiling.

**A/N: Yep, so I think I have a good idea about where this is gonna go now, I've got an idea in my head for a fairly long ongoing story, fingers crossed this goes okay XD. Hope you guys like it so far, reviews are again, really appreciated (and constructive criticism always welcome). Thanks for those who have reviewed so far, especially **_**Sailor Water Dragon**_**: I've changed up the formatting- hope this is a bit better! c:**


	3. Chapter 3

The land of Ooo was naturally a warm and sunny place, but today was one of those days where the sun's rays seemed to brighten the world just a little bit more than usual, where the sky was the bluest shade of blue and there wasn't one candy cotton cloud to be seen from Princess Bubblegum's balcony window. She gazed out at her kingdom, savouring the view of her people enjoying the lovely weather, off to meadows for picnics and many headed to the beach for some sea and sand. Fate had smiled upon her, because today happened to be one of the very few days she awarded herself just to relax and take a break from paperwork and Royal affairs, today was her first day off in weeks and she intended to enjoy it.

Her thoughts drifted to Marceline, as they frequently did, before she realised that of course, she would be asleep during the daylight hours, so unavailable to hang out while she had this free time. She hadn't seen her since that movie night at Finn and Jake's a few days ago, but knowing Marceline, Bubblegum was expecting a familiar tapping at the balcony one evening soon- she may not be sure when she would come to apparently 'convince' her, but at least this time Marceline couldn't catch her off guard.

She should have known better.

Bubblegum was just dialling Lady Rainicorn's number into her telephone, when she heard it. _Tap tap tap_. She froze for a moment, this didn't make sense. Her room was lit with the bright glow of daylight, but there was absolutely no mistaking that knock- she spun round expecting to see Marceline's figure outside her window (impossible though it was) but instead she saw…well she wasn't really sure what she saw. Marceline was there, oh yes, but she was accompanied by some huge object, she could see hooks and handles and planes of fabric that were filtering the light into dim colours on Marcy's grinning face. Bubblegum's scientific mind was baffled, she could still hear the dialling tone of the phone she held in her hand, but her arms hung limply at her sides as she stared, trying to figure out what the sight before her was.  
"Um…Bonnie, are you gonna let me in or just keep staring at me? Cuz I know you like me and all and who wouldn't want to look at this hot bod, but you're looking ever so slightly like you might have poo brain"

Bubblegum shook her head to break her daze and rushed over to open the balcony doors, she dropped the phone to the floor as she tried to shield Marceline instinctively from the bright daylight and usher her into the safety of her room, though Marceline remained completely content, and still floating allowed Bonnie to push her inside.  
"Morning sunshine!" she said buoyantly, with an air of smugness.  
"What are you doing here, I mean how can you be when it's-"  
"Daylight? Yup, I know" offered Marceline, putting her head in her hands, her grin only widening.

Bubblegum paused for a moment as a huge smile formed on her face; confusion could wait because right now the phrase 'pleasantly surprised' seemed just too weak to express what she was feeling. She threw her arms around Marceline's neck and pulled her in for a hug,  
"But this is wonderful! How?" Ordinarily the princess wouldn't have been so shocked to see Marcy out in the daytime, but the fact that she had arrived on her balcony meant she'd had to have flown over, and no matter how much she covered up, on this cloudless day with the sun beating down there was no way she could have so easily flown through the light that Bubblegum knew would cause her skin to burn and boil if ever given the chance. Besides, she was only wearing some black shorts that cut off just above her knees and a grey tank top, not even a hat or gloves to shield her…

"Follow me and I'll show you…" she said as she floated backwards out the balcony doors, wiggling her eyebrows and waving her arms around for effect. Bubblegum laughed (before covering her mouth as she was taught a Princess should, so it was more of a giggle), and followed Marceline out onto the wide balcony to find herself under a huge canopy of colours.  
She looked around her in awe; somehow Mary had managed to construct a sort of half dome, big enough for two people to stand below comfortably, out of a number of umbrellas, all of different colours and patterns. Their handles all pointed inwards, and Marcy had used string to tie them to one long pole in the centre, it was essentially one big parasol. Not only this, but around the edges hung an orange blanket that wrapped all the way around, and so extended the parasol's length further downwards.

Whilst Bonnibel was staring at the parasol, Marceline watched her and her smile felt like it couldn't get any bigger. She could practically see the cogs turning in Bonnie's head, she noticed the way her eyes darted back and forth to see how each part had been constructed, how it fitted together- it wasn't even that complicated and she was still so genuinely interested in it… glob, her and her little pink face were cute.  
"Impressed?" she said, looking down at her nails nonchalantly.  
"Very!" exclaimed Bubblegum "This was a brilliant idea Marcy, ooh now you can come and visit during the daytime and-"  
"Yeah well don't get too excited, don't forget dude I need to get my sleep on during the day, I'm only messing up my sleeping patterns just this once." She waggled her index finger in Bonnie's face.  
"Oh yes of course, I keep forgetting you're a vampire you know- which is silly considering you're floating most of the time… with fangs… and blue skin…and-oh well it doesn't matter!" she shrugged happily, which made Marceline laugh.

"Right, I take it you were planning on heading to the beach?" said Marceline, floating in circles around Bonnibel, noticing that she was garbed in a pink vest top, some peach coloured shorts and sandals. She even had a pair of pink framed sunglasses resting on the top of her head to complete the look.  
"Yes, well. I was going to see if Lady would want to go, I'd just finished getting my bag together and getting ready- although I have to say I don't care much for the candy kingdom beach" she sighed "everyone always flocks straight there, and when there's still sun-beds available those marshmallows have a habit of forgetting their loyalty to their princess" she said, raising an eyebrow and crossing her arms. Marceline chuckled before whirling past her and grabbing the Princess's bag from her room, she returned in a second and before Bubblegum knew what was happening she had picked her up, wrapping her arms around her waist and lifted them into the air. Her other arms hugged around the pole at the centre of the huge parasol and suddenly they were flying. Damnit, Bubblegum would never be prepared for when Marcy did that.

Now, Bubblegum had flown before, she couldn't count the number of times Marceline had taken her up into the air, and exciting though it was- this was something else entirely. Rather than being carried or held, all Bubblegum had for support was her hold on the centre pole of the parasol, more than anything she felt like _she_ was flying. Her arms and legs were wound around it desperately as she clung on- though once the initial feeling of terror at having her, now seemingly miniscule, kingdom below her with nothing in between subsided, all she could feel was an incredible sense of exhilaration. Even though the umbrellas and the blanket surrounding them only reached to about the girls' waists, the shade still kept Marceline safe from the sun's harmful rays whilst providing an absolutely breathtaking view of Ooo as they soared above it. In addition, the shade wasn't cold or unpleasant- the air was still warm with a comfortable summer heat as they floated at the mercy of the breeze. All in all, it was one of the most incredible experiences of Bubblegum's life.

Marceline was subtly keeping them airborne with an arm around Bubblegum's waist that held the centre pole, her increased vampire strength made it feel like she was practically holding a feather up while she flew. For the most part, she was basking in Bonnibel's delight; she watched as her expression changed from surprise, to panic, to terror and then to euphoria. Marceline felt an air of pride, damn, she was good.  
Though she was thoroughly enjoying the experience, and although her heart sailed when bubblegum looked up at her smiling like the sun, she couldn't help but feel very, very anxious. She tried not to let it show but when the breeze carried them upwards a little suddenly, she knew her leg had almost exited the safety of the shade and she involuntarily drew in a sharp breath. In hindsight, wearing shorts and a vest top- though it added to the impressive effect she was going for- may not have been the best idea.

When Bubblegum turned from gazing at the view below her to smile at Marcy again, she noticed her looking worriedly at the edges of their makeshift roof before the vampire girl covered it up and returned her look with a grin (but Bubblegum could tell when Marceline was forcing a smile, easily). It didn't take her long to work out what was troubling her when she saw Marcy had brought her knees up and her arm was plastered to her side. She exhaled with a huff and rolled her eyes, but smiling in amusement none the less. She timidly removed one of her arms from the pole, wary of losing her grip, and she used it to close the distance between the two girls and pull Marceline in close to her, she'd previously been floating dangerously close to the edge to allow Bonnie space in the centre of the parasol.

Marceline was taken by surprise, but glob she was thankful for that, she knew from experience getting caught in the sun was seriously _painful. _When Bubblegum realised she'd pulled in Marceline so their faces were only centimetres apart a small blush formed on her cheeks which Marceline couldn't resist grinning smugly at.  
"Just couldn't resist me, eh?"  
"Ooh don't start, you" Replied Bubblegum, turning to hide her pinker-than-usual face.  
"Oh I don't blame you Bonnie, I mean just _look_ at me"  
"I'd rather not, I might be overwhelmed by your astounding modesty"  
"I can tell ya, it wouldn't be the first time that's happened"  
Bubblegum turned around with a stern expression; Marceline looked at her, equally serious.  
They both burst out laughing after a total of 2 seconds.

They spent the morning and early afternoon like this, floating aimlessly across Ooo, Marceline had many years experience flying these skies, she showed Bonnibel her world. She taught her about the mysterious places that existed only to the knowledge of few- like the crystal lake buried deep in the grassland forest, where giant shards of ice still jutted out at strange angles- somehow they'd never melted due to whatever enchantment was put on them- instead they just glistened and sparkled in the light of the sun. They floated over these strange places, curious observers to all the land had to offer, Bubblegum's enthusiasm and awe never decreasing in the slightest as she listened to Marceline spin tales and retell myths about Ooo's secrets.

In between times, Marceline would make Bubblegum jump by jogging the parasol abruptly whilst she was staring at some thing or another below. Bubblegum never let her get away with it though, for example after she'd been given a particularly good scare, whilst Marceline was roaring with laughter she let out a bloodcurdling, absolutely terrified scream  
"MARCELINE, I'M FALLING, MARCY!" Marceline's laughter stopped immediately, her eyes snapped open with panic to see Bubblegum falling out of her peripheral vision.  
"BONNIE?" she cried out, before looking down and realised that actually, Bonnibel had very simply allowed herself to slide down the pole so she was hanging from the hook at the bottom, and this time it was her turn to crease up with laughter.  
"Ohmygod, I hate you." Said Marceline, whilst helping Bonnibel back up to her former position.  
"Noooo you don't."  
"Yup, I do."  
"Would you forgive me if I told you that I learnt it all from the master?"  
"Well, I am pretty good at-"  
"It's a shame you weren't there that day…"  
"And we are back to hating you." She said as Bubblegum clutched her side laughing once more.

After they'd drifted around enough and seen as many sights as possible, Marceline began to steer them towards their original destination: the beach. But rather than heading towards the main beach as Bubblegum was expecting, they sailed straight over it- she watched as the tiny seeming people crowded together in the sea and sand disappeared from view.  
"Marceline, where are we going?"  
"Patience, young one…" she replied mysteriously, doing that eyebrow wiggling thing again. Bubblegum just raised an eyebrow in return and continued to enjoy the view in the meantime.

Soon enough, Bubblegum was fairly certain she could see what they were headed for. Stretching below them were planes of grass that topped huge, towering cliffs at the sea's border. Bubblegum could see a break in the Cliffside, an area where it dipped inwards into the land and sure enough as they got closer she could see the sea seeping inwards to break on the shore of a tiny cove where the water was a bright turquoise blue, and crystal clear. Also clearly visible from the air was a ship, obviously wrecked there from however many years ago that lay ruined on the beach, it made it an even more amazing setting, more secret.  
Marceline lowered them closer to the sandy cove below them, personally she preferred it at night, when the moon and the stars would make the white sand look silver and the sea glisten- she reminded herself to take Bonnie here again sometime to see it like that- I mean, she was a hardcore rocker, but that's not to say she wasn't above a little moonlit picnic now and then…

They touched down on the soft shore, careful to remain under the parasol's dome at all times, Marceline easily dug it into the ground while Bonnie stretched her legs, she'd gotten achy from staying wrapped around the parasol for so long. Marceline angled it so that it leaned back slightly, _perfect for lying under_ she thought with a fanged smile.

Bubblegum took off her sandals and walked around on the beach, the sand was perfectly soft- it practically caressed her feet as she walked along it, it was warm from the sun and the sea breeze blew through the gap in the cliffs where the cove hid, she breathed it in with her eyes shut and her face turned upwards towards the sky. She returned to Marceline and found she had already set up their parasol to give her adequate shade, she'd lain out Bubblegum's towel and beach equipment, whilst Marceline herself was applying sun cream by the bucket load- she had several bottles lined up next to her with the highest factor on the label.  
"Does that stuff actually work?" questioned Bubblegum  
"Well…it's like, this is the strongest stuff I could find in Ooo- if I put a couple of bottle's worth on then it won't hurt if I accidentally get caught in the sun. If I put a whole load on," she gestured to the line of bottles next to her "then for a little while, I can actually go out in it, although the light isn't really comfortable…"  
"huh" was Bubblegum's response. She made a mental note to study up more on the effects and limitations of vampirism later.

For a while they both sat in comfortable silence, Bubblegum pulled out a book and became absorbed in it- Marceline had managed to fit her banjolele into her bag, she plucked and strummed it thoughtfully. She'd been having more luck with her music lately (gee, why could that be?) and at the moment she was feeling content enough that the music flowed sweetly and endlessly. Now and then she would pause to put on more sun cream until she'd gone through her entire supply.  
"Right, I think I've probably got about half an hour in the sun burn-free. Ready to get your ass kicked in a game of volleyball?"  
"Psh, I think you'll find it'll be me who kicks _your_ butt thankyouverymuch. But Marcy, are you sure- with the sun…?"  
"N'aw, you're not worried about lil' old me?"  
"Fine, let's go then!"

The girls stood up and Bubblegum headed towards the sea, beach ball in hand. Marceline lingered in the colourful shadows of the parasol for just a little while longer before taking a cautious step out onto the sand and…she was… okay. But glob, she was_ not_ used to it. She squinted at the brightness and stumbled forwards a little before her eyes adjusted properly, then sun's rays beating down on her tingled uncomfortably- like it was trying to scratch away at her defences so it could attack her again. She sucked it up though, and ran down towards Bonnie. She noticed the Princess' shorts and vest top were lying at the water's edge, the girl was wearing a simple pink bikini that had some lighter pink frills around some of the edges, she looked _good_ decided Marceline shamelessly- and she was waiting in the water with a beach ball in hand.  
"Are you coming in or what?" she challenged, having noticed the sun cream bottle had 'waterproof' stamped clearly on the label.  
Marceline lifted up her tank top and let it fall to the floor in a pile with Bubblegum's clothes; she was wearing a plain black bikini top on underneath that Bubblegum noticed with a slight blush fitted her _well._ She left on her shorts, they were made of a thin material that would dry quickly in this heat anyway and she waded out to meet Bubblegum in the waves.

The game started competitively, Marceline had an advantage thanks to her vampire abilities giving her plenty of increased speed and strength- but Bubblegum was patient, she was calculated. She was able to make note of the ball's weight, of Marceline's strength and speed- the direction and speed of the wind; she was certainly not an easy opponent. However, soon enough the waves that made their legs sway and buckle, making them fall over and get tossed around were too much for their game to continue. They ended up falling over and laughing too much, eventually splashing each other and trying to run away by wading through the opposing force of the crystal water- it wasn't long before the ball had drifted away and neither of them could be bothered to fetch it.

For a while Marceline just floated on her back, she let the waves rock her and she enjoyed the feeling of floating without putting in the effort to do it herself- during which time Bubblegum took the opportunity to use her underwater camera to get some snaps of the sea life under the surface of the turquoise water. When Marceline began to feel the itch of the sun's rays a little more painfully than she would have liked, the girls retreated back into the shade of the parasol. They spent the rest of the day doing a number of activities- Bonnibel managed to bury Marceline under the sand, save her head, whilst still under the parasol. Marceline nearly had a heart attack when Bonnie began to move the parasol away, allowing the sun to shine down on her- fearing she'd have to stay under the sand until nightfall to avoid getting burnt. They built sandcastles (and enjoyed trampling them in a blast of destructiveness afterwards), explored the shipwreck, Marceline played a couple of songs for Bonnie, who sung along delightedly- they read for a while, enjoying each other's company and chatted whilst watching the sun begin to fall towards the horizon.

Around which time, they packed up their things, put their usual clothes back on and once more huddled around the centre of the parasol to return back to the candy castle. It was a quiet flight back, the girls were both a little tired by now and the sun's blasting heat had faded away to leave the residents of Ooo to bask in a typically warm summer evening. Both just quite contently let their thoughts drift and ponder over the day they'd had.

It wasn't long before they were making the familiar descent onto Bubblegum's balcony; the sun was finally setting and painted the castle walls with an orange hue. Preferring not to risk it (as if she hadn't enough already) Marceline remained under the parasol and floated on her stomach behind the wall of the balcony- Bubblegum rested her head in her hands on the wall from the other side and let out a dreamy sigh.  
"Thank you for today Marcy…I can't even begin…"  
"Heh don't worry, I know. I can be pretty impressive when I wanna be."  
"Hm, I can't really disagree" said Bubblegum, smiling and shrugging her shoulders. "Just when I think you haven't got any more surprises in store for me, you go and do something incredible, again, wonderful even…." Marceline wasn't expecting the blush that came to her cheeks, but at Bonnie's complimentary words she felt her face heating up. She shrugged it off, trying not to get flustered by it.  
"Yeah well…you can be pretty…*cough* wonderful too…I guess…" she said, scratching the back of her head. Bonnibel couldn't help but think the girl was adorable. "So, are you convinced yet?"  
"Convinced?" said bubblegum, her brow furrowed "about wha- oh, right!" she'd almost forgotten in the events of the day… "Oh, well I, I wouldn't know where to- I wasn't expecting…" She was interrupted by Marceline's laughter.

"Haha, don't worry I just wanted to see you get all bothered and confused- it's super cute. You don't have to say anything right now, I've still got more planned for you, and like I said, I don't want 'no' to even be an option by the time I'm done" she said, grinning devilishly (one of Bonnibel's favourite Marceline-smiles). It was really true. Marceline was realising ever more how much she wanted to be with Bonnie again, properly be with her. She wanted to hold her again, brush strands of bubblegum hair from her face, she wanted to kiss her and…she felt the colour rising to her cheeks a little and stopped her train of thought there, heh.

Bubblegum let out a relieved sigh, she hadn't even thought about what she would say at the end of all this.  
"Okay then, I guess I'll…see you again, soon?" she said hopefully.  
"You can count on it" nodded Marceline in response.  
"I'm looking forward to it." She was being completely genuine. And she was genuinely surprised when Marceline suddenly stole a quick peck on the lips. She gasped  
"Marcy! What are you-"  
"I couldn't resist, I guess! And I'm not sorry" she winked as she flew back as far as she could.  
"Ooo, you!" Bubblegum shook her fist at her, but she wasn't really angry- quite the opposite actually, but she couldn't admit that, she reminded herself.

Marceline headed back to her cave feeling smug, she'd had a blast today and even better she felt like Bonnie had as well- and nothing seemed to bring her more happiness than seeing her face lit up like that. She cursed herself for being so cheesy.  
_You're a badass vampire Queen, Marceline- a hardcore rocker, a…  
_Her thoughts were interrupted again when she remembered the look on Bonnie's face after she stole that kiss and she couldn't help but allow herself a small smile.

**A/N: Here's chapter 3, hope you guys liked it! Jeez, the fluff just doesn't stop pouring out does it… ^/^  
Thank you for the kind reviews and comments so far, and to the people who have favourited the story, it's really appreciated! As always, constructive criticism is welcome/ if you did enjoy the chapter feel free to drop in a review (or not, don't worry!) :D  
See you again at the end of chapter four XD**


	4. Chapter 4

_Tap tap tap._

Silence.

_TAP. TAP. TAP._

A whole lot more silence.

"Knock friggin' knock already, Bonnie!" The Vampire Queen pressed her face up against the cool glass of the balcony doors, peering through into the gloom inside. What the-? Her eyes scanned across the shadowed bedroom through a gap in the curtains. Was she not even in there? Now that was just downright insulting. Ugh, she was gonna have to do this the _effort _way.

With a grumble, Marceline swooped backwards and down past the balcony, flying or falling (she wasn't sure which) through the air and coming to a pause at the base of the castle. Gliding past some sickeningly bright flower patches (I mean grod, less is more) she arrived at a fairly uninteresting wall of candy brick on one of the castle's many towers. Typically, it was more than it appeared. Although Marceline figured the real 'secret' was a little less impressive than Bonnie thought it was.

A few painfully boring minutes later, the vampire had made an adequately sized hole in the wall by pulling the loose bricks out one at a time. (Wasn't that some kind of building hazard? Whatever.) She floated through into a dark cellar and went about the task of replacing all the dumb pink bricks again. Jeeeeez. _Effort_.

She rolled her eyes and headed towards where she could see a vague glow of light on the other side of the old room. She tilted her head to examine a few of the objects around: mostly some old machinery against the walls. There was also a person-length-table with some broken straps across the top, a contraption that resembled a baby's highchair, an old robot rusting away in the corner, some tubs and barrels filled with glob knows what crazy chemicals, and a variety of weird junk scattered around. She figured she was in the right place then, the basement below Bonnie's lab.

A few dim beams of light shone down from lines between the wooden planks of a trap door- Marceline could see little specs of dust in it, floating through the air almost as lazily as she was. Pressing her palm against the base, she pushed upwards and whatever lock had been there before easily gave out against the vampire. Raising her chin, she glided silently upwards into the bright white glare of a gleaming laboratory.

A couple of squints and maybe a very quiet hiss later, her eyes had adjusted and she could spot the candy princess sitting at a desk on the far side of the room. Pfffft. Knew it.

Marceline floated towards her, sticking high and close to the ceiling; the Princess was evidently way too wrapped up in her stupid test tubes and reports to notice. Going for the subtle approach, she waited till she was hovering over the desk and –lying on her side, head in her hand and a fanged grin across her face- she let herself sink gently through the air.

"Hi."

Marceline was pretty sure the scream than ensued would have sent shivers down the spine of the toughest rough-houser in the village, curdled the blood of any demon in the Night-O-Sphere and it had probably echoed its way to the denizens of mars itself.

"And good evening to _you_, Bonnibel."

"OH. MY. GLOB. MARCELINE!" The Princess leaned her elbows on the desk and ran her fingers through her sticky bubblegum hair, exhaling heavily. "That was, I thought I explicitly told you to stop doing that!"

"And I thought I explicitly told _you_, no." Marceline flicked her tongue, smiling, and leant back with her arms crossed behind her head. "What are you doing all shut down here anyways? I had to go to like, a whole bunch of effort to get in and everything."

Used to the scare-routine by now, it didn't take long for Bubblegum to return to her usual calm demeanour, "Oh, well... Just some more late night lab work really." She gathered up some of her papers ad shuffled them together idly, "I've been looking further into the candy bees of the Kingdom, you wouldn't believe-"

"Whaaat? Bees? This totally interrupts the usual-stealing-away-in-the-night-from-your-bedroom thing we had goin' on."

"_Well_," Bubblegum started with a huff, "I'll have you know that for the past... 3 weeks is it? I've been waiting for your supposed visit in from my room each and every evening. You might forgive me, _Marceline_, for trying to finally get some work done!" She crossed her arms and looked as if she wanted to pout, but restrained herself to just looking suitably irritated.

Not having thought this conversation through beforehand, Marceline glided around Bubblegum and scratched the back of her neck- knowing that the pink girl was right. She puffed out her cheeks and sighed a breath before starting, "Yeah, about that… it' not that- I wasn't trying to disappear or anything. I just kinda forget, like. A thousand years and the days all sort of blur together." The Princess' irked look became more of a frown, but before she could say anything, Marceline continued. "But! I have a pretty good reason for making my glorious return tonight."

Bubblegum just raised an eyebrow at this, "Oh?"

"Mmm-hmm." She hummed, "And we gotta get moving, so come on. Tear yourself away from the oh-so-interesting test tubes... if you can."

This received a smile from the Princess- who had quickly forgotten all about being mad at the three (ahem, and a half) week disappearance. It would be a lie to say she hadn't been looking forward to Marceline's next visit- much as she'd rather not get worked up about these things, they were bringing back memories. Memories of the vampire's near nightly appearances at her balcony, there to whisk her away to some new adventure (probably not by Finn's definition) or perhaps just to join her inside for a cosy evening. Hmmph… maybe she was drifting into old habits.

She gave her experiment notes one last very important shuffle and set them aside in a neat pile on the desk, as she rose up from her seat to take her lab coat off- Marceline poked her shoulder and held a pale hand there.

"Aaaaactually Bonnibel, you might wanna keep that on for a while. Or something."

"What do you mean?"

"What?"

"Why would I need it now?"

"Hmm?"

"I- oh never mind." Bubblegum rolled her eyes at Marceline's smirk and obligingly pulled the lab coat back on over her shoulders. "I take it you'd rather not go back through the basement entrance?"

"Oh I dunno. It _is_ kinda more my style."

"Forgive me. I somehow forgot cold and creepy basement was your style."

Marceline rolled over in the air with a sigh and pointed to her fangs. "_Vampire_. Queen."

"Who takes a Bubblegum Princess out on dates?"

"Okay fine, I dabble in you dumb pink cheeriness."

"The front door, for once, then?"

"Well if you're gonna get all snarky about it..." Marceline grumbled playfully, flying towards the entrance and waiting for Bubblegum to hurry over. "But I am not dealing with quivering candy servants who can't take a prank." she said as she floated out of view towards the ceiling. Bubblegum's footsteps clacked against the polished castle hallways as they made their way towards the front door.

"It was hardly just a playful prank, Marcy. Peppermint Butler nearly didn't make it after your exploits."

"How was I supposed to know he needed those red stripes to live or whatever!" groaned Marceline, floating above Bubblegum. "For the record, I don't regret it. They were delicious."

Shaking her head, the corner of the Princess's lips pulled up in a smile regardless. Speaking of Peppermint Butler-

Marceline held her head in her hands as Bonnie chatted away merrily with her little butler guy. They were gonna be late if she didn't shut her trap soon. With a devious grin, Marceline silently lowered herself down behind Peppermint, catching Bubblegum's narrowed eye as she did so. Dramatically raising her hands and growing her fangs out, she leaned down towards the unsuspecting butler's red stripes and…

"WELL- I'msorryPeppermintI'llhavetobeleavingnowdon'texpectmebacktilllateraufwie dersehen" Bubblegum shoved past him and knocked Marceline out of the way with a forceful elbow to the stomach. The Vampire girl hushed a laugh and turned herself invisible, allowing Bubblegum to drag her down the corridor and out of the open candy doors. "We are never taking the main entrance again."

"I told youuu" sang Marceline with a wicked smile, hooking her arms under Bubblegum's and lifting her into the crisp evening air.

* * *

The Princess watched the view thoughtfully as they skimmed just under the clouds, which were highlighted with a variety of pink and orange streaks now that the sun had almost set. This was probably about the earliest Marceline could be out in the day without a parasol or a hat or something. Bubblegum's thoughts were interrupted as she felt a shiver run down her, the area they flew through was a little too close to the Ice Kingdom's harsh winds for her liking- and she did only have a simple pink dress and a lab coat on for warmth (It's not like Marceline radiated out heat either, after all). The circumstances only made her curiosity grow stronger, "What are we doing so far out here anyway, Marcy?"

The raven haired girl grinned and lowered them a little further, heading towards a pair of fairly small mountains at the edge of the adjacent rock Kingdom that were coming up close. "You're about to find out, Bonnie."

They touched to the ground with a thud that kicked up a little cloud of dust and Marceline lowered Bubblegum gently to the floor, taking her hand and quickly leading her down a winding dirt road- footsteps crunching in a fast rhythm. Not a deserted road though, the Princess noticed tyre tracks in the dirt and some clean and fairly new-looking little fences that ran alongside the path.

They rounded another corner and to Bubblegum's surprise, were greeted with the sight of a building carved into the side of the mountain, lined with neat square windows and a huge banner running across the top that read "Ooo Annual Science-a-thon!" Her face positively lit up in understanding to see a small crowd of people milling about outside, nearly all in lab coats and the majority in deep discussion with intrigued expressions. She turned to Marceline with what could only be described as a face of absolute genuine delight, "How did you know?!"

"Heh- I..uh, know what?"

"That I've never been able to come before! To the Science-a-thon! The Morrow can't navigate around the mountains and it's too long a trip for me to-"

"Oh yeah that!" Marceline interjected, "I totally knew, just from. Y'know, knowing you and stuff."

Bubblegum clasped her hands together and took in the sight once more with excitement, before grabbing hold of Marceline's arm and dragging her towards the building. The vampire girl just smirked- well that was kinda lucky. She hadn't even realised Bubblegum had heard of this science-ey thing before… score!

* * *

Not- score.

A couple of hours or so into the conference, and Marceline's mood had drastically changed.  
This. Was. The. Dullest. Thing. EVER.  
What had she been thinking? Sure, Bonnibel was in her freaking element, tugging her round from stand to stand, speech to speech, lectures… demonstrations... experiments... _there was just so much to see, Marceline!_ But in the mean time the Vampire Queen was growing more and more tired of not understanding a word these dorks were saying, of the weird looks she was getting- looking so out of place- floating in an old baggy band T-shirt and torn jeans with her favourite red boots glaring out against the sea of white coats. She sighed grumpily; Bonnie wasn't even being any fun. Whenever she tried to poke a joke at one of the science nerds she just 'tsk'ed at her and got absorbed in some other chemical or machine or whatever.

It had reached the point where Marceline was becoming more and more visibly moody, following Bonnibel around reluctantly with a scowl on her face and her arms crossed sulkily- something that didn't go un-noticed by the candy Princess. She decided to ignore it for now, it was difficult enough to try and understand Marceline most of the time anyway- let alone when she was being distracted with the wonders of…science!

The line was drawn however, during a lecture, another hour later into the marathon conference.  
"HEY DUDE!" Bubblegum's eyes widened and her mouth opened a little as Marceline stood up mid-speech and yelled across the rows of chairs to the lecturer. "THIS SCIENCE JUNK OR WHATEVER IT IS YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT IS REAL INTERESTING AND ALL- BUT I DON'T THINK YOU'RE AWARE OF HOW MUCH THAT BOW TIE LOOKS LIKE A BRA."

Well hey, Finn would have got it.

The sugary-sweet Princess, however, didn't seem amused. She deemed it appropriate to stand up (you could practically see the steam coming out of her ears), grab Marceline's arm as tight as her strength would allow and pull her out aggressively and angrily into the corridor.

The Vampire sighed, what was her problem with a little joke all of a sudden? She let her feet drop onto the red carpet and leant against one of the wall grumpily, waiting for her to start. "Yeah?"

"Marceline, what are you doing?!"

"Whaat? I just-"

"You're the one that brought me here anyway, I don't understand why you're acting like this!"

"Oh_ I'm _acting like this?" challenged Marceline threateningly. "Jeez, since when is trying to have some fun in this science centre such a crime?"

"I _was_ having fun!" Retorted Bubblegum, upset and with watery eyes- obviously Marceline's actions had been playing on her mind more than it appeared. "And you're being… you're being snarky and bad tempered and quite frankly_, rude_!"

By now their voices were getting louder and louder, the argument's volume very easily heard even through the rock walls of the building. There was an uncomfortable atmosphere in the room they'd just left as the lecturer made a feeble attempt to keep speaking even with the two girls' shouting match echoing through the corridors.

"For grod's sake, Bonnie! Excuse me for thinking this was a date or some junk! Y'know where you actually talk to me in more than a murmur about some interesting piece of mould or whatever!"

"Well I thought you brought me here to enjoy the scientific wonders the conference had to offer! And that mould _was _extremelyinteresting, thank you very much!" Bubblegum yelled back fiercely, squaring up to the vampire girl.

"FINE! Why don't you go back to your stupid meeting about your stupid science and your stupid moulds and you can find your own STUPID ride back to the Candy Kingdom!" Marceline said as she turned her back and started floating away down the hall, deciding it was best to leave now before her eyes stung with the threat of crying any more than they already were.

"FINE! I will!" huffed Bubblegum, lifting her chin up as a tear rolled down her cheek and turning back to the double doors of the meeting room. Why did this always, always have to happen? Did Marceline hate being out with her that much? Should she be sorry for enjoying the conference she'd taken her to? UGH!

Red in the face, she slammed back into the room and marched over to her seat, sitting herself down with folded arms as the audience of scientists stared at her, alarmed. She may as well have slapped them all round the face as she went. "WELL?" She yelled up to the gaping lecturer.

"Oh- u-uhm, right!" He stuttered, "Well, as you can s-see in this specimen here…"

* * *

For the second time that evening, Bonnibel Bubblegum felt a shiver rattle down her spine. She gripped her arms and hugged herself as tightly as possible, trying to ward off the harsh cold that surrounded her in the night air. She clenched her jaw, partly to hold off the shivers for a little longer and party out of being stubborn. She refused to feel down, she refused to start worrying. Sure, she was standing alone outside the mountain building with the science-a-thon banner fluttering weakly in the dark behind her. Sure, she was twisting her foot anxiously into the ground as she looked down the pitch black, winding path that lay ahead of her. Sure she had no way of getting back to the Candy Kingdom- what was she supposed to do? She'd been offered lifts but…after enough incidents with characters like Ice King and Ricardio, she wasn't in the mood for travelling with strangers. So sure, she was a little bit lost right now.

Sure, she didn't think Marceline would have actually-really left her stranded here.

Pacing back to the building, Bubblegum leant her back against the wall and let herself slide down till she was sitting on the floor, hugging her knees to her chest and burying her head behind them. Behind the knees was a blank expression, not crying (she was thankful for that) but…hopeless. She was stuck here. Too far away to walk back, she'd been careless enough not to bring a communication device. After all, what could go wrong when she was with Marceline?  
Huh. She should have known better. Wasn't that always the problem?

Just as the Princess was contemplating making some kind of shelter to wait out the night, a pair of red boots landed with a thud in front of her- a certain Vampire Queen having given in at the sight of her sliding to the ground, all alone. Bubblegum looked up, sullen but with cold eyes. "I thought you'd left."

"Well do you want a lift home or not?" Asked Marceline impatiently, anger having ebbed only marginally from earlier.

Bubblegum's expression hardened and she rose to her feet "So this is like a favour, huh? Thanks for bringing me, only to leave me here alone Marceline- but oh how wonderful of you to finally offer me a way back home?"

"I tried to do something nice for you, y'know. That was the whole point." She growled.

"And it was!" sighed Bubblegum, "It was a wonderful idea! I don't understand why you had to spoil it with your attitude!"

Marceline's face contorted into a snarl at this, a hiss escaping her lips. She drew in a breath and leant forwards, about to scream Bubblegum's ears off at everything. Not some stupid drama about a lecture- but everything. The fact that for the past couple of hours, all their fight had done was remind her of why things ended so badly in the first place. It was… everything about them. Sometimes she just figured they didn't work. They had periods of happy-cheery-banter-no-problems times, but they were inevitably broken up with fights that left the pair of them seething for days, weeks, months. Years.

She drew back, letting her chest rise and fall, the tip of her tongue dipped in venomous words that were ready to fly out of her mouth. Instead, she felt her hands tug at her hair- desperate for what she said to mirror what she thought- and at the same time, not at all. She released another sigh, her voice coming out in a harsh whisper.

"See- this. This is why we broke up, Princess." Marceline shut her eyes, resisting the urge to hiss the words. "I just… I just go and ruin everything every time, don't I? I'm just a total screw up- right?"

Bonnibel, fuming, opened and closed her mouth, taken back at her reply.

"That's what I thought." Affirmed Marceline, eyes turned towards the ground. "You've still got that lift back if you wa-"

"You are _not_, a screw up." Interrupted the Princess, the emotion behind her words was more angry than it was consoling. "Why don't you ever believe me when I tell you that?! Of course I'm going to get mad at you sometimes, for glob's sake Marceline!" She was talking faster now, her thoughts beginning to tumble out unfiltered. "Just because I get angry when you interrupt an important lecture or you _assault a guest at one of the most important dinner parties of my life_- that doesn't mean…ugh! That doesn't mean I suddenly hate you! I mean, what do you expect? All of those things were important to me, Marcy! And I just- even though sometimes you do this to me- and you do this to me so much, but I know that I also hurt you but- I… I wouldn't _change_ you! Not _ever_." She breathed out the last words, heart thudding inside her chest. "Do you understand me? I don't care! This happens all the time and I just- I don't care! And no matter what you seem to do I still want to see you again at my window the next night anyway!"

The currently far-from-bubbly Princess took a pause to catch her breath, but she wasn't done yet. "I don't care, that you ruin a dinner party. I care, Marceline, when you talk about yourself like that!" Bubblegum pointed at her accusingly. "And it's why we keep going through this in the first place! Silly scientists at a conference or silly royals at a party give you those funny looks and you take it out on yourself. And then you get moody and you get angry and you take it out on everyone else. But I will _not_ have you calling yourself a screw up- not talking about yourself that way. That is forbidden, alright? And I'm a royal too so that's a real thing I can do. You are probably the... you are probably the most important person in my life, Marcy. Fighting, friends, dating- whatever! And do you know how much it pains me to know what thoughts you're thinking when I see you get that expression on your face? Sometimes you make me…so… angry! And I- you are not a screw up and I wouldn't change you for Ooo- alright?"

Marceline stood there, having looked up at the Princess with her eyes wide and a brow furrowed at the speech; currently, she was feeling a little dumbstruck. Some of the things the Princess was yelling at her…was that true? Maybe the candy girl understood her insecurities better than she did herself. Not that she had insecurities of course; Vampire Queens were too cool for that.

Another few moments of silence passed between the two, Bubblegum still with that fiery expression and a heavy breath and Marceline still hearing the words echo round again in her head.

"Now.. I.. I would very much like and appreciate that lift back. Please." Said Bubblegum, her eyes darting to the ground, then back up to meet the vampire's intense gaze.

"Sure, Bonnie." Marceline replied a little distantly, closing the gap between them to lift the Princess into her arms. In a matter of seconds they were gliding upwards silently with the building disappearing into the darkness behind them, to be replaced by a silhouetted landscape dotted with stars.

Not unlike the occasional journey from the past, it was a quiet flight.

After a long while of hearing the wind whistle past them, Bubblegum was alerted by this quiet being interrupted suddenly.

"I'm sorry." Came Marceline's small voice out of the night.

Bonnibel waited patiently for her continue, knowing she wasn't finished.

"I knew how I was acting and I'm sorry. It was dumb." She shut her eyes, Marceline wasn't and would never be a fan of drawn out apologies. "I dunno, I just… it's been a while since we got to hang out and I guess I was kinda jealous that the science was more interesting than I was. And you were right. It… gets to me. A little. The looks and stuff. Like oh-here-comes-the-fearsome-vampire-lady-everyone-hide-your-children-grab-the-pitchforks. "She mocked in a heavy voice before breathing out a sigh, "And I'm sorry I made you upset and stuff. And thank you anyways for…y'know. What you said. For the record, I _am_ sorry about the dinner party too." This was stupid. Look how many 'sorry's she'd just said. She might as well start apologising to herself for being useless at apologising too. Ugh- stupid stupid stupid…ness.

It was impossible to tell through the blackness of the night, but a small smile was tugging at Princess Bubblegum's lips- Marceline was the same as always. And so was she, it seemed. The very fact they still fought like they always had was enough to prove that. Maybe the fact that they remained drawn to each other regardless of this proved something _else_ as well. Hmm. That was something to muse on…not right now.

"I forgive you." Said the Princess simply and calmly, "And I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have ignored you like that, it was incredibly rude and unfair of me…especially after you went to all the trouble to take me there. To somewhere you probably hated, in fact..." Bubblegum realised this fact as she spoke the words. "I- thank you, Marcy." She said, a little slower and more sincerely. She didn't want to bring up the insecurities thing again. It wasn't by any stretch of the imagination a comfortable topic for Marceline, and they'd argued enough for one night.

"It was nothing."

"No it wasn't, it was actually really rather considerate and kind of you to do. Something I shouldn't still be impressed by each time you go to the trouble for me."

"Yeah well, impressive person." Marceline pointed to herself and arched her neck to raise an eyebrow at Bonnibel.

"I'm not sure tonight could have been more interesting if we'd tried."

"Pfft, it probably woulda gone a whole lot better if I hadn't talked about that guy's bra-tie." Smirked the vampire.

The memory made the Princess release a giggle despite herself. "Yeah well- it did look a lot like a bra." She conceded.

"Speaking of bras…" trailed Marceline, prodding the pink girl in the small of her back and receiving a little squirm in return.

"Marceline!"

"Too soon?" the vampire stuck her tongue out mischievously- yep, the tone had already comfortably changed once again.

A grumble and a firm poke to the nose was all she achieved out of that. Eh, she could do patience.

* * *

"Another night, another balcony-drop-off..." smiled Marceline, laying back in the night air and raising her head ever so slightly to meet Bonnibel's gaze.

"It certainly seems that way." Nodded Bubblegum sleepily and leaning against the little railing that surrounded the terrace. She turned to tug down the handle of the glass door behind her; it opened with a familiar click and glided out to meet her hand, as always. A muffled tap as she stepped onto the stone floors of her bedroom, another raised eyebrow met with two fangs poking out in a grin, and another goodbye that left them both with the promise of more.

"You're it won't be nigh on four weeks next time?"

"Scout's honour- or something. Cross my heart and hope to die…again."

A roll of the eyes.

"And hopefully things'll go a little smoother this time, eh?" Marceline shut one eye in an almost-wince as she drifted backwards.

"I wouldn't say we've ever been 'smooth' Marc y." Bubblegum tilted her head, a subtle smile showing in her expression.

"That's…probably true. Alright, prepare yourself for like, full on brawls then. I'm talking crazy fights here."

"Taking no prisoners." Added the Princess resolutely.

"I'll get a spot set up in the Night-O-Sphere ready for when I kick you outta my sight, yeah?"

"I think I have a spare pair of shackles set up in the dungeons waiting for you already."

"Shackles, eh? Well when you put it like that…" Marceline winked.

A muffled laugh and the shake of a head before the balcony door slammed on her. Now, maybe she was just imagining things but she was pretty sure she'd heard a 'We'll see' before they'd shut.

Score.

**A/N: Right- so I have an apology to make myself! . I'm so sorry it's taken this long to update! Holy crud, I got distracted with a couple of big side projects to start with… and then suddenly school and work and no time and- agh. D: It might still be difficult for me to find time to write, but I don't want to leave an update that long again, sorry sorry sorry for the delay dudes! (And the reviews did spur me to get my butt on to the computer, heh, thanks guys ;3)**

**Other than that- hope you enjoyed the chapter! I tried to show a little of the other side of their relationship- I get the feeling that they're pretty dysfunctional- varying from happy-fluffy-banter times to some seriously angry arguing moments. I dunno, what do you guys think? :)**

**In any case- thank you for reading and reviews of any kind are hugely appreciated! :D**


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